Joseph Verner Reed Jr. (December 17, 1937 – September 29, 2016) was an American banker and diplomat. He served as

United States Ambassador to Morocco This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Morocco. Morocco was the first country to recognize the United States of America in 1777. Regular diplomatic relations were established in 1905. In 1912 Morocco came under the control of Fran ...

from 1981 to 1985, and as

Chief of Protocol of the United States In the United States, the chief of protocol is an officer of the United States Department of State responsible for advising the president of the United States, the Vice President of the United States, vice president of the United States, and th ...

from 1989 to 1991.

Early life

Joseph Verner Reed Jr. was born on December 17, 1937, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

.Yale University Library
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He was named after his father, Joseph Verner Reed (1902 - 1973).Marie Maude Byers To Wed Joseph Verner Reed, Jr.
''

The Palm Beach Post ''The Palm Beach Post'' is an American daily newspaper serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and parts of the Treasure Coast. On March 18, 2018, in a deal worth US$42.35 million, ''The Palm Beach Post'' and '' The Palm Beach Daily News' ...

'', July 5, 1955Elaine Sciolino
Washington at Work; Making a President's Planes, Trains (and Diplomatic Matters) Run on Time
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', October 30, 1989 His paternal grandfather was

Verner Zevola Reed Verner Z. Reed (October 13, 1863 – April 20, 1919) was an American capitalist, mediator, lecturer, and author. He became one of Colorado's most important and enterprising pioneers and played an important role in Colorado's early history and bec ...

(1863-1919). His mother was Permelia Pryor. He had a brother, Nathaniel Reed. and another brother Samuel Pryor Reed (1934-2005), manager at

Engelhard Industries Engelhard Corporation was an American ''Fortune'' 500 company headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey, United States. It is credited with developing the first production catalytic converter. In 2006, the German chemical manufacturer BASF bought ...

. He is also a descendant of

Edward Doty Edward Doty (August 23, 1655) was a passenger on the 1620 voyage of the ''Mayflower'' to North America; he was one of the signers of the Mayflower Compact. Early life Doty came from England, but from where in Suffolk, England 1598. According ...

(1599-1655), who emigrated to the United States on the

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English sailing ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, reac ...

. He grew up at Denbigh Farm in

Greenwich, Connecticut Greenwich ( ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 63,518. It is the largest town on Gold Coast (Connecticut), Connectic ...

, and Corsair in

Hobe Sound, Florida Hobe Sound is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States, located along Florida's Treasure Coast. The population was 13,163 at the 2020 census, up from 11,521 in 2010. Geography Hobe Sound ...

. He was educated at the

Deerfield Academy Deerfield Academy (often called Deerfield or DA) is an Independent school, independent College-preparatory school, college-preparatory boarding and day school in Deerfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1797, it is one of the oldest secondary schoo ...

, a private boarding school in

Deerfield, Massachusetts Deerfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Settled near the Connecticut River in the 17th century during the colonial era, the population was 5,090 as of the 2020 census. Deerfield is part of the Springfield, Massachus ...

, and graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, a private university in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

, in 1961.

Career

He started his career as private secretary to the president of the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

, Eugene "Gene" Robert Black, Sr. (1898-1992).William Plummer, Linda Kramer
On the Eve of Another Summit, Joseph Reed Is the Man of Every Hour
''

People The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

'', 06/04/1990 He then was vice president and assistant to the chairman of the

Chase Manhattan Bank JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is an American national bank headquartered in New York City that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of the U.S. multinational banking and financial services holding ...

David Rockefeller David Rockefeller (June 12, 1915 – March 20, 2017) was an American economist and investment banker who served as chairman and chief executive of Chase Bank, Chase Manhattan Corporation. He was the oldest living member of the third generation of ...

, from 1963 to 1981. In 1980 he ran "Project Alpha", a secret operation backed by David Rockefeller intended to give sanctuary in the US to the exiled Shah of Iran, and later to discouraging the new Iranian regime from releasing the American hostages before the 1980 election to help Ronald Reagan's chances of defeating President Carter. After the election Reed wrote to family that “I had given my all” to thwarting Carter’s efforts “to pull off the long-suspected ‘October Surprise,’” a reference to his activities in discouraging the Iranians from turning over the hostages to Carter.Jonathan Alter, Gary Sick, Kai Bird, Stuart Eizenstat
It’s All but Settled: The Reagan Campaign Delayed the Release of the Iranian Hostages
'' New Republic (magazine)'', 05/03/2023 In 1985, he became United States Deputy Permanent Representative to the Economic and Social Council of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

. Two years later, in 1987, he became Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for Political and General Assembly Affairs. He was appointed by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

to serve as

from 1981 to 1985.Brittany Lyte
More than 20 years later, remembering a brief walk with a giant
''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

'', July 12, 2013 He was then appointed by President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

to serve as the

from 1989 to 1991. He returned to the UN, serving as Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Special Representative for Public Affairs from 1992 to 1997. From 1997 to 2004, he served as President of the Staff-Management Coordination Committee of the UN. In January 2005, he was appointed as Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser. He was re-appointed as such in 2009. He was a member of the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...

. He was the recipient of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

. He also received The Yale Medal from his alma mater, Yale University.

Personal life

He married Marie Maude Byers, daughter of J. Frederic Byers (1939–1977) of Philadelphia, with whom they had two daughters, Serena (Reed) Kusserow and Electra Reed. Reed died at Greenwich Hospital in

, on September 29, 2016.Alt URL
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References

External links

Joseph Verner Reed Papers (MS 1964) at Yale University special collections
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Joseph Verner Jr. 1937 births 2016 deaths Businesspeople from New York City People from Greenwich, Connecticut People from Hobe Sound, Florida Deerfield Academy alumni Yale University alumni World Bank people JPMorgan Chase people Ambassadors of the United States to Morocco American officials of the United Nations American recipients of the Legion of Honour Chiefs of protocol of the United States 20th-century American businesspeople